“Investors, however, are also taking a wait-and-see approach, as concerns over tapering by the Federal Reserve as well as fourth-quarter earnings of listed firms will continue for the time being,” said Park Sung-hoon, a researcher at Woori Investment & Securities Co.

The Fed, which has operated an $85 billion monthly bond-buying program to boost the U.S. economy by keeping interest rates low, announced last month that it would begin reducing bond purchases by $10 billion per month starting in January, citing signs of an economic recovery.

With the Federal Open Market Committee meeting slated for Jan. 28-29, market watchers are focusing on whether the central bank will announce additional tapering.

Foreigners and institutions sold 36.4 billion won and 25 billion worth of Seoul shares on the main bourse, respectively. Individual investors, in contrast, scooped up a net 49.4 billion won.

SK Hynix fell 4.56 percent to 36,650 won as investors sought profit-taking from its steep rise in previous trading sessions.